better late than never....

I have been in Rathcormac for about five days now, and have yet to blog. Just trying to keep up the same standards from my last trip abroad. I promise I will be better about it once the girls are back in school. I'll get to the good stuff now- I feel like I am finally settling in here at the McCarthy house. Paul and Catherine (the parents) are really great, and were very welcoming from the get go. Naoise and Aoife (pronounced NEE-sha and EE-fa) are precious and very sweet. I arrived on Saturday and didn't do much over the weekend. The highlights were really a drive into the town closest to us Fermoy (about 5minutes away), dinner at a pub in the village, and my first driving lesson. The most stressful for sure was driving. I had practiced driving stick a few times before I left the states (thanks to Mark and Mary Rice!) but was still not perfect. Good news- I didn't stall at all! Bad news- I had to drive stick from the opposite side of the car and the road which was quite an adjustment. Paul took me out and was really great about it, although I was pretty nervous.

Monday started the work week for Paul and Catherine, which meant it started for me as well. Paul doesn't work on Mondays and Fridays so it was nice to ease into the responsibilities with him here. I had the girls on my own in the morning while Paul took Catherine into Cork City where they both work. After he got back he showed me the ropes, and I played with the girls for most of the day. Then I minded them while he went to pick Catherine up from work. It is nice that when they get home they are really good about making sure that the girls give me a break after being with them all day. Tuesday-Thursday I have the girls all day (from around 7:30AM-6PM) until they start school on the 31st. We have spent most of our time outside over the last couple of days since there has been such nice weather. Everyone I meet keeps telling me this isn't typical for Ireland, and I believe them! I have to laugh when they say it is hot here because I am still in pants and long sleeves while they are in summer clothes.

I met Catherine's mom and sister this week which was nice. Catherine's sister lives in the village, and her mom lives in Cork City. The girls were VERY excited to introduce me.

I had a second driving lesson yesterday which went much better than the first- Paul said he could tell I was a lot more confident and I definitely was. It will be nice to be driving once the girls are in school, so I can do what I want during the day.

Naoise and Aoife keep asking me questions about America and constantly want to hear about stories from when I was young. If anyone can think of any good ones let me know!- I have been racking my brain! They also ask if I have ever met a different Disney channel actor everyday. Apparently they think I am tight with a lot of celebrities to include Selena Gomez, Beebs, Miley Cyrus, and just about any pop star you can think of.

I haven't seen Taylor yet, but we finally both got mobiles (and yes group awesome I am loving being able to call them that), so it will be easier to communicate. Killavullen is having a festival this weekend so I am hoping to see her for that!